{"product_id":"grand-plat-faience-rouen-style-oversized-blue-basket","title":"Antique French Faience Platter | Cul Noir | Late 18th to Early 19th C.","description":"\u003cp\u003eThis antique French cul noir faience platter is one of those pieces that makes you look twice. At first, it is the the color that catches you, somewhere between pale blue and turquoise, almost like old sea glass. Then the scalloped rim, the hand-painted design, and the deep manganese brown glaze start to tell the rest of the story.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe front is decorated in a soft \"eau de Nil\" (water of the Nile) tone, with the hallmark garden urn motif in the center. There is a geometric border of treillage and small floral panels around the rim. Turn it over and the back has the glossy dark brown finish associated with cul noir faience, meaning black bottom in French.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis example was likely made in Forges-les-Eaux in Normandy, or in a closely related Rouen-style workshop, and likely dates from the late 18th to mid 19th century.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe platter is generously proportioned and would have belonged at the center of a long table. You can imagine it carrying a roast from the kitchen, holding sliced fruit after lunch, or being brought out when the meal needed something larger and more beautiful than an everyday plate.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe age is visible in all the right places. There are chips and glaze losses along the rim where the terracotta shows through, fine crazing across the surface, and a soft iridescent sheen on the brown underside from long use and handling. An older but secure wall-hanging harness is already attached, so the platter can be displayed immediately.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt would make a beautiful anchor piece for a collection of Rouen, Nevers, Normandy faience, or other cul noir pottery. It has the presence of a serving piece, the softness of hand-painted faience, and that wonderful old French balance between usefulness and decoration.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"The Provence Collection","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52313901072727,"sku":"FAI-014","price":565.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0938\/4686\/4215\/files\/grand-plat-faience-rouen-style-oversized-blue-basket-2.jpg?v=1765274084","url":"https:\/\/theprovencecollection.com\/products\/grand-plat-faience-rouen-style-oversized-blue-basket","provider":"The Provence Collection","version":"1.0","type":"link"}